The Definitive Akira Manga Box Set Is Available At A Great Price

When it comes to groundbreaking manga, few series are as influential as Akira. Katsuhiro Otomo’s landmark work about rebellious teens and psychic powers burst into the mainstream with a feature film that is still widely regarded as one of the best animated films of all time–that you can grab on 4K Blu-ray for only $19–but before Kaneda and Tetsuo were battling each other on the silver screen, their conflict unfolded across an epic manga series.

Otomo’s manga series celebrated its 35th anniversary back in 2017 with a luxurious box set collection of the entire Akira manga run, and it wasn’t long before it sold out. Thankfully, the set has since become available again, and right now you can grab it for a stellar price at a trio of retailers. Listed at $220, you can snag the 35th Anniversary Box Set for $128. If you’re looking for the definitive Akira collection, it doesn’t get better than this.

Note that Amazon’s deal is offered by a third-party seller, while Walmart’s and Target’s will be shipped directly from your retailer of choice.

This particular collection is a high-quality reprint of the work, all collected in six beautiful hardcover volumes and is bundled together with the hardcover Akira Club art book and an exclusive pill patch. Each hardcover book has a revised translation, the original right-to-left reading format, new lettering, and Otomo’s original hand-drawn sound effects for that extra visual punch.

While the feature film largely sticks to the main plot beats of the manga–Akira is a dystopian sci-fi series set in a city inhabited by vicious motorcycle gangs and powerful walking weapons that have the potential to level Neo-Tokyo all over again–the manga understandably has far more to it. The main takeaway is that the manga is so dense with information, character development, and richer story threads that it would have been impossible to cram all of it into a single feature film experience.

Yes, the 1988 film is an influential tale in its own right, but for the full, unabridged Akira experience, you’ll want to grab this manga box set before it sells out again. It also makes for a great gift for any anime fan in your household, and for more ideas before the festive season kicks off, you can check out our roundups of deals on Naruto, One Piece, Bleach, Berserk manga collections.